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REFRIGERATION

Food storage

How to store cheese (processed, mozzarella, cheddar)

Pizza outlets, cafés and bakeries in India use large amounts of mozzarella, processed cheese and cheddar. Hard and processed cheeses are relatively stable, but fresh and semi-soft cheeses such as mozzarella have higher moisture and spoil faster. Grated or shredded cheese has much more surface area for moulds. The safe approach is to keep all cheese at 0 to +4 °C, wrapped or sealed, and freeze bulk mozzarella or grated cheese at −18 °C or colder if you cannot use it within your planned period.

  • Chilled0 to +4 °C
  • Frozen−18 °C or colder (mozzarella, grated)

Do

  • Keep cheese in its original vacuum pack until needed. Once opened, rewrap tightly in film or store in an airtight container.
  • Hold the working quantity of grated cheese for a pizza or sandwich line in a refrigerated prep counter or undercounter drawer, not in an open tub at room temperature.
  • Freeze mozzarella in usage-sized portions. Thaw slowly in the fridge; it melts and stretches well on pizza after freezing.
  • Store cheese on shelves separate from raw meat and away from strongly flavoured foods.
  • Rotate by date. Surface mould on hard cheese can sometimes be trimmed, but discard soft, grated or shredded cheese that shows mould.
  • Label opened packs with the opening date and use within the time your plan sets.

Avoid

  • Do not leave grated cheese out beside a hot pizza oven for a whole shift.
  • Do not refreeze cheese that has already been thawed.
  • Do not wrap cheese in damp cloth inside a fridge; it encourages mould.
  • Do not store cheese right against the evaporator, where it can freeze partly and turn crumbly.

In Indian conditions

In hot QSR kitchens, the area near a pizza oven or conveyor can run very warm, so a refrigerated prep counter or undercounter unit with drawers is worth the space. Cheese deliveries often arrive in non-refrigerated vans during peak summer; check temperature on receipt and reject warm product. Monsoon humidity encourages mould on any opened block, so keep packs sealed and the fridge door closed. During power cuts, grated cheese is the first item at risk; move it to a freezer or a colder unit if the outage is likely to be long.

General good practice for commercial kitchens and shops. Where your FSSAI licence conditions or food-safety plan set stricter limits, follow those.